


Unexpected Love

by darkangel86



Category: Days of Our Lives
Genre: F/M, Love Confessions, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-08-18
Packaged: 2019-06-29 07:34:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15724851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkangel86/pseuds/darkangel86
Summary: “Let him go!” Ciara yelled as he mother continued to pull Ben, arms handcuffed behind his back, out of the loft. “Mom, stop it, let him go!”“Ciara, enough!” Hope yelled and out of the corner of her eye she saw Rafe flinch.





	Unexpected Love

**Author's Note:**

> A girl can hope for a declaration of love like this, can't she? ;)

“Let him go!” Ciara yelled as he mother continued to pull Ben, arms handcuffed behind his back, out of the loft. “Mom, stop it, let him go!”

“Ciara, enough!” Hope yelled and out of the corner of her eye she saw Rafe flinch. 

“Hope, maybe you should-” Rafe tried, hesitantly. 

“No. **NO**. I have had enough of Ben Weston and his sick obsession with my daughter!” Hope screamed as she continued to fight to get Ben out the front door of her daughters home.

“What did I, _wait_ , what did I do?” Ben asked desperately, his eyes bright with unshed tears as he attempted to plant his feet harder against the floor.

“You had your hands, _your filthy, murdering hands_ on my daughter!” Hope screamed and this time everyone flinched. “You were going to-” She started.

“He wasn't going to do anything!” Ciara interrupted, lunging forward to grasp Ben's arm. 

“I wasn't, I-I wouldn't hurt her. _Hope, please_.” Ben pleaded, the tears in his eyes now rolling down his cheeks.

“Shut up, shut up!” Hope snapped. “How dare you try and hurt my daughter again! Nearly burning her alive wasn't enough so now you thought you'd try and strangle her?!” She accused, the look in her eyes wild.

“Mom, he wasn't. _Oh my God_. He wasn't trying to hurt me!” Ciara explained, angry that she'd even have to. But at this point, there was nothing she or Ben could say or do that was going to make her mother see that he wasn't going to hurt her. Unless.

“Maybe we should listen to Ciara, Hope. I mean, we did jut barge in on them. Maybe there's an explanation for why Ben had his hands on Ciara that we're not understanding.” Rafe said, trying to be the voice of reason for the woman he loved.

“What excuse could he have?” Hope demanded, seething as she looked at Ben, her hold on his arms tightening.

Ben's eyes widened. They'd decided not to say anything to anyone yet, that they needed time. He refused to break his promise to her now. He could, and would, deal with the consequences himself. It was no less than what he deserved.

“I don't have an excuse.” Ben whispered, brokenly, his eyes refusing to raise from where they were trained onto the floor at his feet.

“Ben.” Ciara demanded. “You do have an excuse.”

“Ciara, no. We said we wouldn't. Its not the right time.” He begged, knowing that she risked losing everything because of him.

“ _Screw the right time_!” Ciara snapped and Ben finally looked up. She was mad and Ben couldn't help but flinch in shame. She was mad because of him, because he couldn't keep his hands to himself.

“Ciara...” Ben said, his voice barely a whisper. He watched as the girl that he'd somehow fallen in love with square her shoulders and look her mother straight in the eye.

“Ben wasn't doing anything wrong, mom. He wasn't doing anything I didn't want.” Ciara said plainly and in front of her she saw Rafe sigh. “He is allowed to touch me. I want him to touch me, I asked him to.” She admitted, her voice firm as she spoke.

“What?” Hope asked, her jaw clenched so tightly her voice was barely more than a whisper when she spoke.

“Ben and I, we're together. We've been together for a couple of months now. He's my boyfriend and he's allowed to touch me, whether you like it or not.” Ciara said, leaving no room for argument in her voice.

“Ciara, no. What? Sweetheart, this isn't you. You would never let- its him, he's brainwashed you or-”

“Damn it, mom, no!” Ciara yelled. “I am in love with him! I love him and you have no say in it!”

Ben had heard people say that hearing those words were unlike anything you could imagine. He'd thought for so long that he had been in love with Abigail. He highly doubted that now, hearing Ciara say she loved him for the first time, because he'd never felt this way when he'd been with Abby, not even for a second.

“Hope.” Rafe's voice seemed to break through the fog around the other woman. She flinched but looked to her left where he was standing. “Let him go.” She hesitated but did as she was told.

“I love you too.” Ben said as he wasted no time to moving forward into Ciara's personal space and taking her into his arms. “I love you too.” He repeated as he held onto her as if she might disappear if he didn't.

“I don't understand this.” Hope finally said, the defeat in her voice almost painful to hear. “He's a murderer!” She exclaimed.

“And who in this town isn't?!” Ciara snapped back, daring her mother to say another word. “He's good to me, mom. He is still taking care of me, months later, and I like it. I like knowing that I have someone I can depend on and know that no matter what happens, he's on my side. He doesn't judge me, he doesn't make me feel less because I'm not ready to sleep with him, and yes mother, that's exactly what Tripp did, right before he jumped into bed with Claire.” It felt so good to finally tell her mother that, that Ciara couldn't help but smile.

“Honey, I had no idea.” Hope rushed to say as she took a step closer to her daughter, who was still held tightly in Ben's arms.

“Its why I left that day. Why I wrecked on dad's motorcycle. I was so messed up after walking in on them that I couldn't see straight.” Ciara explained.

“Oh, honey,” Hope's voice broke this time as she spoke. “I am so sorry. I just want to keep you safe and I keep failing at my job as your mother.”

“Its not your job anymore to keep me safe, mom. I'm a big girl. I can look after myself. And, if I can't, I have Ben now. He won't let anything, or anyone, hurt me.” Ciara insisted, hoping her mother understood and believed her when she said she was safe with him.

“She's right, Mrs. Brady. I won't let anything happen to your daughter. I know you don't like me and you have just cause. I'm not a good person. I messed up, so bad that its not your fault for not believing that I've changed. I am a murderer. I killed innocent people. But I have changed. I got help. I don't have those urges anymore, to hurt people, like I did before. And, god forbid I ever did, I'd hurt myself before I ever laid an unwanted finger on Ciara. I love her.” Ben said, his voice so sincere that it broke Ciara's heart to hear him admit it.

“I don't trust you,” Hope started, her voice cold as ice. “I don't trust you one bit but especially not with my daughter.”

“Then maybe you should trust me, mom? Let me make my own decisions. If this is a mistake, then its mine to make but I'm going to be completely honest with you when I say, this feels right. Being with Ben, it feels like its where I'm supposed to be.” Ciara said honestly, smiling when she felt Ben's arms tighten just a fraction around her waist. Maybe it should have frightened her, knowing those hands had taken the life from three innocent people but all they made her feel was safe.

“Sweetheart, I will always trust you.” Of course it was true but how was she supposed to believe her baby girl was safe in the arms of a serial killer? 

“Then believe me when I say I'm exactly where I want to be.” Ciara's words left Ben nearly speechless. Never in his wildest dreams did he ever think this wonderful girl could care about him and yet here she was defending him to her own mother. If ever there was a second chance in his life, Ben knew this was it.

“I swear to you, I will not hurt Ciara.” Ben said as firmly as he could.

“Hope,” Rafe said, breaking the silence that followed Ben's words. “I think we should go.”

“But-” Hope started.

“There's nothing you can do here. She's made her decision and whether you like it or not, you've got to accept it.” Rafe said, making more sense than he'd made in quite a while.

“Trust me.” Ciara said with a smile. “I'm not asking you to suddenly welcome Ben with open arms like he's your long lost son. But just, have a little faith in me. You and daddy raised me right. I know what I'm doing.”

“I hope you do.” Hope finally said and with one last look at her daughter, who was now looking up into Ben Weston's eyes with a smile unlike she'd ever seen on her child's face, she let Rafe pull her out of the loft, closing the door after them.

“I've lost her.” Hope cried as she leaned into Rafe, her legs nearly giving out under her.

“You haven't lost anyone, Hope. But you're going to have to do as she asks and trust her.” Rafe said quietly as he helped her down the hall in the direction of the stairs.

Back inside the loft, Ciara was still smiling brightly up at Ben as he continued to hold her in his arms.

“I really do love you, you know?” Ciara asked, a hint of a smirk playing on her lips.

“I don't know what I ever did to deserve you but I'll do it every day for the rest of my life if it means I get to keep you.” Ben said fervently. 

“I think I'll keep you too.” Ciara whispered against his lips before she closed the gap between them.


End file.
